Distracting himself from the emptiness within him wasn't easy.
His dark thoughts now had a voice; a name. He could almost hear the shade's velvet tone highlighting his flaws, his deepest regrets and insecurities. 'Oh, Jackson,' it would purr, 'look at the mess you've made'.
Snowball fight after snowball fight he instigated, but he couldn't forget the feeling of that warm hand wrapped around his cold wrist.
None of the human activities he had previously enjoyed watching could erase the memory of speaking to someone for the first time.
Even the adventures of his 'favorite three' failed to ease the loss he felt aching within him, but they had come the closest.
They had found each other as fate would have it. Something- Jack later found out through eves dropping that it was pure coincidence –brought them together and they became fast friends. Humans and their ability to create relationships so easily always pulled at the child's jealousy. What was he doing so wrong that, not only could he not make his own friends, but they couldn't even see him to begin with?
Eyes clouding with envy, he watched from an overhanging tree branch while the three humans settled around a fire as night set in and traded tales of their trials. The Viking's dragon seemed restless throughout the conversation, but Jack paid him only half a mind in favor of listening to their retellings as if he hadn't been there to see them himself; he always loved to hear stories.
LINE
"-if not for him, I probably wouldn't have survived. Of course, he had to settle the score- 'only saving most of me' –but at least we're even now, right bud?" Hiccup chuckled good-naturedly as he nudged the large dragon's side. There wasn't much of an answer from the fidgeting Night Fury as his narrowed eyes searched their surroundings. "Toothless?"
The dragon gave a warble in response, not sure if his instincts were off or if there really was a threat hiding out in the shadows.
Rapunzel shuddered uncomfortably at the sudden chill in their air. "I think something might be wrong," she admitted nervously when her new friends looked confused.
Silence fell upon the small group as they cast glances around the clearing they had found. Come to think of it, it did feel as if they were being watched. A strange breath of air shifted the fire's shadows into monstrous shapes that sent the three humans to their feet and readying for a fight. Merida loaded an arrow into her now equip bow, Rapunzel lifted her frying pan in both hands as if to swing it, and Hiccup drew his sword from the sheath and ignited the blade with fire.
LINE
From just above the tense humans, their unknown protector- also sensing the impending danger –tightened his grip on the crooked staff at his side. Without so much as a blink, rose to crouch on the branch and whispered for the wind to be ready.
LINE
No more than a minute later, Toothless' gaze snapped to a particularly dense shadow and began to growl in warning. The group of humans followed his lead and pointed their weapons at the yet-to-be-revealed threat. Everything was still for several moments before a sinister chuckle filled the air. The shadow stepped forth.
LINE
The eternal child drew in a sharp breath at the figure's appearance.
No…
His nightmare had come to rid him of the only light he had left.
LINE
"Who're ye'?" Merida demanded, thick accent overlaying her unease at the sight of this man.
His skin was a sickly grey and all but blended into the black robe he wore that seemed to connect him to the shadows dancing behind his back. Murky, gold eyes revealed nothing more than the blank expression regarding the group before him. That is, of course, until a feral grin spread across his face, lifting his lips to show off pointed, yellowed teeth.
Rapunzel could not hold back her gasp at the fear this man was pulling from them. Surely he couldn't be human. "What are you?"
Another chuckle oozed around the clearing. "That is a better question."
His voice sent chills through the group.
"Are ye' goin' ta answer er not?"
"Very well," the slimy voice relented, eyeing each of them closely, "My name is Pitch Black; the King of Nightmares." With his words, the shadows around the edges of the clearing began to take shape into vicious-looking horses. They began to crowd the trees, cutting off any and all escape routes. Toothless lowered himself to the ground threateningly as he caught sight of the beasts shifting about the treetops to prevent them from flying.
Hiccup shifted slightly, just enough to place his empty hand on the dragon's head in a vain attempt to steady him. "What do you want?"
A glint crossed the shade's eyes as he readied himself to answer, but his words were cut off before they began.
LINE
"Leave them alone."
The order came from above and, though he could not see Pitch's face, he knew the man was smirking.
Still no answer came, but this did nothing to deter the boy.
"I will not let you hurt them, Pitch."
"What can you do to stop me?"
Jack flinched at the pure poison in his voice and the sharp intent underlying the question. No, the boy was not powerless, but how could he help? He was nothing more than a nuisance; a mistake unwanted by even the one who created him. 'Oh, Jackson, you'll only make a mess of things.' The young sprite tried not to flinch.
"I will do anything."
It was not a lie. Jack would give his life protecting them. It only slightly surprised him that he was willing to go so far for a group of strangers, but something within him refused to let any harm come to them. Deep inside, Jack knew that these humans were meant for so much more than what they've already done. They would go on to do great things, even if their invisible guardian was lost before their journey truly began.
"Will you?"
LINE
Confused glances were passed back and forth between the teens as the grin fell into a smirk.
"What can you do to stop me?"
First, the man toys with their nerves by hiding in the shadows, then he emerges to give them his name, only to begin talking to the air. This made no sense.
"Will you?"
Whatever conversation the man was having was not going well by the sound of it. Though, they could only hear his responses, whoever he was talking to was not winning.
Rapunzel blinked in confusion as her heart was pulled painfully as if it were a close friend being spoken to by this monster. Casting a quick look over to her companions, she found that they held the same expression she was sure shown on her own face. Something inside of her wanted nothing more than to get Pitch Black's attention off of…whatever it was he was talking to.
Merida, always the impatient, beat her to it. "Hey, we're over 'ere. Don' jus' expect us ta sit quietly after a threat like that!"
It worked well enough for the man's eyes to meet hers. There was no hiding the contempt in the man's golden gaze. "Has no one taught you that it's rude to interrupt?"
"Interrupt?" Rapunzel blurted out. "We're the only ones here." Even as she said it, the smile crossing those fearsome features ignited unease within her. Was she wrong?
Hiccup came to her rescue, "Who were you talking to?" he asked conversationally.
Pitch's dark eyes rose to a low-hanging branch just above the large clearing tauntingly, but he didn't say a word.
"Alright ah've had enough of this." She hadn't even been finished talking when the archer let off an arrow towards the sinister shade.
Much to their surprise, a long shadow burst out of the forest and caught the shot before it had crossed the fire hearth. Merida blinked in astonishment and lifted her green eyes to meet the amused gaze of the Nightmare King.
LINE
He was still fighting off the self-loathing brought on by their admission of not seeing him when Pitch's mirthful gaze lifted up to him. It did nothing to help him stave off the painful voice in his head. 'They can't see you; they'll never see you. You're invisible, Jackson, it's like you don't even exist.'
The shot caught him off guard, pulling him out of the depression he was falling into. In the pregnant pause that followed the arrow, Jack could sense the pending attack crossing the expression on the shade's face just before they both jumped into motion.
Pitch's wave of sand didn't even make it past the edge of Jack's branch as he vaulted himself in front of it and shot a wall of ice as a shield. Carefully noting the placement of the humans behind him, winter's child angled a flurry of icy shards toward the shadow wielder in hopes of blinding him. It did not work as he had hoped, but had rather given the shade the time to snap his fingers, calling his hoard into the battle.
Before the humans could even gasp in surprise, Jack danced around his wall of ice and shifted it until it completely surrounded those he was protecting, dragon included though he hope the Night Fury didn't melt the shield before he could fight back. He was given no more time to worry as all of the nightmares sent after the humans were now converging onto him. Pitch only laughed as he watched the winter sprite defend himself again the never-ending torrent of horses that clawed and ripped at his ever-moving form.
Much to the shade's astonishment, however, the boy wasn't overtaken despite being completely swarmed. He gracefully dodge around each attack, ignoring those that landed, and sent off countless bursts of snow and ice strong enough to freeze his attackers giving him the time to shatter them until they were melting into the ground. Lifting slightly higher in the air, Jack continued to focus his abilities until he was in the middle of the horde.
With only a slight intake of breath to warn them, the child grasped his staff with both hands. A loud shout escaped his pale lips as shockwaves of ice tore out of his center decimating every nightmare for miles. Even Pitch was forced to fade into the shadows to protect himself from the pure power that radiated from the boy. Just as suddenly as it had begun, it ended as the last of the horses were shattered.
Jack breathlessly crumpled to the ground.
LINE
No one said a word.
The ice dome that surrounded them shattered with the last huge wave of ice that had taken out every shadow within the clearing.
Pitch was gone along with all of the horses that had almost torn them to shreds, but none of them had any idea how.
It was as if the weather had a mind of its own.
A winter wasteland greeted them as they stepped off of the lush, green grass that had been protected with them inside the dome. The temperature of the slightly breezy spring day had fallen drastically, but they didn't shiver; minds too clouded to notice they were cold.
Toothless did not follow their aimless wandering about the clearing to search for answers, but instead cautiously moved to the center of the desolate snow, sniffing at an oddly dented pile. A curious gust of wind moved over the group before it circled the dragon's pile of snow as if leading the teens to investigate.
They didn't argue.
"W-What is it, bud?" Hiccup asked when his dragon stopped him from taking another step towards the mound of snow they surrounded.
The Night Fury could only warble imploringly at his rider, not understanding that the humans could not see the unconscious sprite. Heedless to their confusion, Toothless began to nudge the snow.
To the teens' amazement, however, it wasn't the snow the dragon was touching, but something on top of it. They blinked in completed bewilderment as that something seemed to shift on its own; the disturbed snow being the only way they could tell.
"My mother told me of a legend, his name was Winter," Rapunzel remembered. "She told me how he could control snow and blizzards; that he was evil and enjoyed the horrors he brought with him, but it was ice that shattered the rope that mother tied me with when I got away."
"My da' always told me stories of Old Man Winter, but ah never believed 'im. He said tha' 'e hated everything, but ah saw frost in Mor'du's fur when fightin' 'im," Merida gasped.
Hiccup tilted his head slightly. "After the battle with the Red Death, Gobber told me they found shards of ice in my hair. He believed that Jokul Frosti was watching out for me that day. It didn't make sense to me because there are stories of him leading children into the forest to die, casting ships onto ice burgs, and freezing crops to starve villages."
As if in response to their epiphanies, Toothless grunted and shook his head violently as if trying to get something out of his nose. Trying to make the humans understand, he nudged the snow again and warbled sadly.
"If all of the legends and stories are true…"
The thought was cut off with a sharp gasp as the figure of a young boy began to appear before them. Short, messy hair the color of the purest snow lay atop a child-like face relaxed in sleep. He wore a strange-looking, brown cloak over a white, long-sleeve shirt, and brown, deer-skin pants ripped off just below his knees, tied with leather cords. His feet were bare though somehow not even slightly colored in response to the intense chill in the air.
Countless gashed and bruises marred the motionless boy and the obvious fact that his chest was still as stone worried the teens greatly. He lay, unresponsive in the large snow pile, his skin pale as if he was already dead. That notion was forgotten as the boy's fingers twitched before he shifted with a small groan, though he still didn't wake.
Hiccup finished Rapunzel's words with the wonderings of his own mind. "…why would he do so much to protect us? How can someone evil be that selfless?"
"Maybe 'e jus' had a grudge against Pitch." It was phrased as more of a question, but it remained unanswered.
A short time passed before the snow around them slowly began to melt with the slightly rising spring temperature and the falling sun's lights casting about the clearing. Again, the boy shifted uncomfortably; no doubt still sore from the fight.
"What do we do?" Rapunzel asked after a time of silence. "We can't leave him after all he's done for us."
"Nah, we have ta' do somthin'. If we leave 'im here Pitch might come back for 'im."
Hiccup nodded, "You're right. We have to help him at least until he wakes up."
Toothless didn't need telling twice as he curled around the unmoving child and laid down to rest.
The teens followed suit and remade the campfire that had gone out in all of the excitement with a little help from the dragon who had to be convinced to blow fire onto the stack, though he did wisely get up and shift the pile of wood further from the boy of ice.
It took some time, but eventually, the fire was able to warm them up a bit. As night began to set in, Hiccup took Toothless out to spend some energy as well as gather blankets and warmer clothes for their stay while the girls remained watchful over the small boy.
Once Hiccup returned and they donned themselves in what warmer clothes the Viking could find, they began the long wait for the sprite to wake up. It was no surprise that they ended up sprawled out around the fire as eyes grew heavy.
Morning came, the bright sun waking the teens instantly, but they were worried to see the strange boy still passed out. After Hiccup and Toothless retrieved breakfast, they settled in for another day of waiting.
They banked his age at about 10 going by his size and appearance. It shocked them slightly to consider him so much younger in comparison as they had discussed their own ages earlier; Hiccup being almost 18, Rapunzel having just turned, and 16 Merida being 15. Of course, they had no doubt he was older than he looked. He had to be to contain as much power as he had shown in the fight with Pitch. Though it made them slightly weary as they had all been raised on stories depicting this very spirit as being as cold and cruel as the ice he created.
The conversation had inevitably branched off into the many other legends they had been told. Each one, of course, had been told differently in association with the ranging cultures they had originated from. Their comparisons went fairly late into the day when it was cut off by the sound of the boy beginning to wake.